US20150161752A1

Movatterモバイル変換

Info

Publication number: US20150161752A1
Application number: US14/566,229
Authority: US
Inventors: Amos Barreto; Laszlo Korsos
Original assignee: Uber Technologies Inc
Current assignee: Cortland Capital Market Services LLC
Priority date: 2013-12-11
Filing date: 2014-12-10
Publication date: 2015-06-11
Also published as: WO2015089221A1; AU2014362392A1; CA2932917A1

Abstract

A system and method for arranging an on-demand service is described. A computing device can maintain a queue that includes a plurality of user identifiers corresponding to a plurality of users. Each user identifier is added to the queue in response to receiving a request for service from a corresponding user. The computing device receives information from a device of a service provider that the service provider is available to provide service to users. In response to receiving the information, the computing device selects a user identifier from the queue to assign a corresponding user to the service provider based, at least in part, on specified on-demand service locations corresponding to the plurality of user identifiers and a current location of the service provider.

Description

RELATED APPLICATION

This application is a non-provisional filing that claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 61/914,885, filed Dec. 11, 2013, titled INTELLIGENT QUEUING FOR USER SELECTION IN PROVIDING ON-DEMAND SERVICES; the aforementioned application being incorporated by reference in its entirety.

BACKGROUND

On-demand service arrangement systems exist that arrange for transport services to be provided for a user by a driver of a vehicle. For example, in many cases, a user that requests a transport service may be provided the first available driver or the closest driver to the user's requested pickup location.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 illustrates an example system to arrange an on-demand service using one or more queues.

FIGS. 2A and 2B illustrate example methods for arranging an on-demand service for a user using one or more queues.

FIG. 3 illustrates an example of a queue maintained by an on-demand service system.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram that illustrates a computer system upon which examples described herein may be implemented.

FIG. 5 is a block diagram that illustrates a mobile computing device upon which examples described herein may be implemented.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Examples described herein provide for an intelligent dispatch system that arranges an on-demand service to be provided for a requesting user by a service provider. According to some examples, during times of high utilization of service providers in a given region, such as when the number of available service providers are low and/or the number of requesting users are high in the given region (e.g., as a result of many service providers already providing service to users), the dispatch system can maintain one or more queues for a plurality of users that have made requests for the on-demand service. When a service provider becomes available, the dispatch system can select a user from the queue(s) and assign that user to the service provider. The dispatch system can select a particular user from the queue(s) based on the location information pertinent to the user and location information of the service provider.

For example, the dispatch system maintains one or more queues, e.g., in a database stored in a memory resource, that includes a plurality of user identifiers corresponding to a plurality of users. The one or more queues can be updated in real-time (e.g., updated dynamically) by the dispatch system. For example, the dispatch system can add (or store) a user identifier to the queue in response receiving a request for transport from the corresponding user or can remove (or delete) a user identifier from the queue after an expiration of a duration of time (e.g., two minutes). In one example, for a given geographic area or region, during times of high utilization, a plurality of users may individually request a transport service within a short period of time of each other, and no drivers (e.g., service providers) may be available to provide the transport service within the given geographic region. In such conditions, the dispatch system may place the user identifiers for those users in a respective user queue and continue to determine whether a transport service can be arranged for any of those users for a duration of time as opposed simply transmitting an error message (e.g., “Sorry, no driver available” message) to the requesting users' devices.

When a driver in the given geographic region becomes available, the dispatch system can receive information, from the driver's device, indicating that the driver is available to provide transport to users (e.g., is on-duty and capable of providing transport) as well as the current location of the driver. For example, the driver can operate a service application running on his or her mobile computing device to update his or her status from being unavailable to available. The information about the driver's availability can be provided to the dispatch system over one or more networks. In response to receiving the information indicating that the driver is available, the dispatch system can select a user identifier from the queue to assign the corresponding user to the driver based on the pickup locations of the user identifiers in the queue and the current location of the driver.

According to an example, the dispatch system can also maintain the plurality of user identifiers in the one or more queues based on a timestamp in which the dispatch system received the transport request from a respective user (or a timestamp in which the respective user made the transport request). In this manner, the user identifiers can be placed in an order or grouped in a respective queue so that the dispatch system can select a user identifier from a first set of identifiers having an older timestamp as compared to a second set of identifiers having a newer timestamp.

In some examples, when the dispatch system receives information indicating that a driver is available in a given region, the dispatch system can determine the estimated travel time from the driver's current location to the individual pickup locations of one or more user identifiers in the queue corresponding to the given region. For example, the dispatch system can determine the estimated travel time from the driver's current location (e.g., the current location at the time the driver device transmitted information indicating that the driver was available) to the respective pickup location for each user in the first set of identifiers in the queue (e.g., five user identifiers) and select a user having a pickup location corresponding to the shortest estimated travel time for the driver. In another example, the dispatch system can determine the total distance to be traveled by the driver to the respective pickup location for each user in the first set of identifiers in the queue and select a user having a pickup location corresponding to the shortest total distance to be traveled by the driver. By selecting from the queue or from a set of identifiers in the queue (e.g., from those identifiers having the oldest time stamps or time stamps exceeding a predefined duration from the current time), the dispatch system can select a user that has been waiting a longer period of time than another set of users, while continuing to optimize for the selection of a user for the available driver.

As used herein, a client device, a driver device, and/or a computing device refer to devices corresponding to desktop computers, cellular devices or smartphones, personal digital assistants (PDAs), laptop computers, tablet devices, television (IP Television), etc., that can provide network connectivity and processing resources for communicating with the system over a network. A driver device can also correspond to an in-vehicle computing device of a transit object, or custom hardware, etc. The client device and/or the driver device can also each operate a designated service application configured to communicate with the intelligent dispatch system (e.g., a client service application and a driver service application, respectively).

Still further, while some examples described herein relate to transport services, the system can enable other on-demand location-based services (for example, a food truck service, a delivery service, an entertainment service) to be arranged between individuals and service providers. For example, a user can request an on-demand service, such as a delivery service (e.g., food delivery, messenger service, food truck service, or product shipping) or an entertainment service (e.g., mariachi band, string quartet) using the intelligent dispatch system, and the system can select a service provider, such as a driver, food provider, band, etc., to provide the on-demand service for the user.

As used herein, a queue refers to a data structure which can be stored in a medium such as a cache or other memory resource. In the context of examples provided, the queue is an aggregation of data items, each of which are based on or otherwise correspond to a transport request. A selection process can be associated by default with the queue in order to pair the transport requests of the queue with drivers, vehicles or other resources which can provided the transport requested. The implementation of the selection process can rely on use of characteristics associated with individual data entries of the queue, including position information (e.g., pickup location) provided with the corresponding transport requests. As such, the manner in which transport requests are resolved and eliminated from the queue may not reflect any natural sequence, but rather are derived from intelligent and programmatic determinations which are based at least partially on, for example, position information provided with the corresponding transport requests. In some examples, the queue can be characterized by a duration which corresponds to the age or length of time any one entry can reside as part of the queue, without (i) the entry being removed from the queue, or (ii) the entry being designated for special handling outside of the default queue selection process.

One or more examples described herein provide that methods, techniques, and actions performed by a computing device are performed programmatically, or as a computer-implemented method. Programmatically, as used herein, means through the use of code or computer-executable instructions. These instructions can be stored in one or more memory resources of the computing device. A programmatically performed step may or may not be automatic.

One or more examples described herein can be implemented using programmatic modules, engines, or components. A programmatic module, engine, or component can include a program, a sub-routine, a portion of a program, or a software component or a hardware component capable of performing one or more stated tasks or functions. As used herein, a module or component can exist on a hardware component independently of other modules or components. Alternatively, a module or component can be a shared element or process of other modules, programs or machines.

Some examples described herein can generally require the use of computing devices, including processing and memory resources. Examples described herein may be implemented, in whole or in part, on computing devices such as servers, desktop computers, cellular or smartphones, personal digital assistants (e.g., PDAs), laptop computers, printers, digital picture frames, network equipment (e.g., routers) and tablet devices. Memory, processing, and network resources may all be used in connection with the establishment, use, or performance of any example described herein (including with the performance of any method or with the implementation of any system).

Furthermore, one or more examples described herein may be implemented through the use of instructions that are executable by one or more processors. These instructions may be carried on a computer-readable medium. Machines shown or described with figures below provide examples of processing resources and computer-readable mediums on which instructions for implementing examples described herein can be carried and/or executed. In particular, the numerous machines shown with examples described herein include processor(s) and various forms of memory for holding data and instructions. Examples of computer-readable mediums include permanent memory storage devices, such as hard drives on personal computers or servers. Other examples of computer storage mediums include portable storage units, such as CD or DVD units, flash memory (such as carried on smartphones, multifunctional devices or tablets), and magnetic memory. Computers, terminals, network enabled devices (e.g., mobile devices, such as cell phones) are all examples of machines and devices that utilize processors, memory, and instructions stored on computer-readable mediums. Additionally, examples may be implemented in the form of computer-programs, or a computer usable carrier medium capable of carrying such a program.

System Description

FIG. 1 illustrates an example dispatch system to arrange an on-demand service to be provided for a user, according to an example. In some examples described herein, during times of high utilization of service providers in a given region, the system can maintain a queue for a plurality of users using the respective users' identifiers or user names. Users that are in the queue may have made a request for an on-demand service, but have not yet been assigned a service provider. When the system receives information from a service provider indicating that the service provider has become available for providing service in the given region, the system can intelligently select a first user from the queue and assign that first user to that service provider based on the specified location information of the users (e.g., pickup locations) in the queue and the service provider's current location.

According to an example, thesystem100 includes adispatch110, aclient device interface120, adriver device interface130, a request manage140, apayment processing145, and anadministrator interface160. Thesystem100 also includes a plurality of databases for storing records and information, including at least aclient database150, arules database165, and adriver database113. A plurality ofclient devices170 and a plurality ofdriver devices180 can communicate with thesystem100 over one or more networks using, for example, respective designated service applications (e.g., configured to communicate with the system100). The components of thesystem100 can combine to arrange a transport service for a user by selecting the user from a queue when a driver becomes available. Logic can be implemented with various applications (e.g., software) and/or with hardware of a computer system that implements thesystem100.

Depending on implementation, one or more components of thesystem100 can be implemented on network side resources, such as on one or more servers. Thesystem100 can also be implemented through other computer systems in alternative architectures (e.g., peer-to-peer networks, etc.). As an addition or an alternative, some or all of the components of thesystem100 can be implemented on client devices, such as through applications that operate on theclient devices170 and/or thedriver devices180. For example, a client application, such as a designated service application, can execute to perform one or more of the processes described by the various components of thesystem100. Thesystem100 can communicate over one or more networks, via a network interface (e.g., wirelessly or using a wireline), to communicate with the one ormore client devices170 and the one ormore driver devices180.

Thesystem100 can communicate, over one or more networks, withclient devices170 anddriver devices180 using theclient device interface120 and thedevice interface130, respectively. The device interfaces120,130 can each manage communications between thesystem100 and the

respective computing devices

170,180. In some examples described herein, theclient devices170 and thedriver devices180 can individually operate a service application that can interface with the device interfaces120,130, respectively, to communicate with thesystem100. According to some examples, the applications can include or use an application programming interface (API), such as an externally facing API, to communicate data with the device interfaces120,130. The externally facing API can provide access to thesystem100 via secure access channels over the network through any number of methods, such as web-based forms, programmatic access via restful APIs, Simple Object Access Protocol (SOAP), remote procedure call (RPC), scripting access, etc.

According to examples described herein, a user of aclient device170 can operate the service application on herclient device170 to make atransport request171 for a transport service. Thetransport request171 can be automatically generated in response to the user providing user input to place an order for the transport service (e.g., in response to a selection of a feature on a user interface of the application). In one example, thetransport request171 can include a user identifier (ID)121, apickup location123, a vehicle type125, and/or adestination location127. Depending on implementation, in some cases, the user may not be required to provide adestination location127 when making thetransport request171. The service application can automatically determine the current location of theclient device170 as the pickup location123 (e.g., as a default setting) or can identify a location specified by the user via a user input as thepickup location123. For example, the user can input an address, street intersection, or name of a place (e.g., store, restaurant, building, park, a place of interest, etc.), or move a selectable feature that is displayed on a map to indicate thepickup location123.

Thesystem100 can receive thetransport request171 over one or more networks (e.g., over a cellular network) via theclient device interface120. In one example, the request manage140 can process thetransport request171 by updating and storing information about thetransport request171 in theclient database150 for the requesting user (e.g., using the respective user ID121). The request manage140 can manage the transaction for a requesting user by, for example, (i) communicating with thedispatch110 to determine the status of drivers, (ii) providing communications to theclient device170 regarding the status of the requested transport service, (iii) providing information when the transport service has been completed and/or (iv) maintaining and updating client information for the user in theclient database150.

Typically, when a user makes atransport request171, thedispatch110 can select a driver from a pool of available drivers for the user (e.g., normal transport arrangement mode). For example, within a given geographic region in which the user requested pickup (e.g., within a metropolitan area, or within the city limits or neighborhood of a particular city), a plurality of drivers may be on-duty and available for providing transport. Thedispatch110 can maintain adriver database113, which is periodically updated with real-time or close to real-time driver information (e.g., driver status and driver current location) by communicating with thedriver devices180. Thedispatch110 can select a driver and send an invitation message to thedriver device180 asking the driver if he or she wants to provide transport for the requesting user. If the driver accepts the invitation, the user can be provided an update regarding the status of the transport request, e.g., that a driver has been selected and is traveling to the user's pickup location.

However, in some cases, such as during times of high utilization, no drivers may be currently available to provide transport at the time thesystem100 receives thetransport request171. For example, in a given region, such as in San Francisco, California, there may be an event (such as a concert or sporting event) occurring at a time that causes many users to request transport services with thesystem100. In another example, at certain times during the week, such as on a Friday evening, many people within the city may request transport services around the same time (e.g., to meet with friends, to go out to dinner, etc.). A time of high utilization can be a time when one or more users have requested transport service but no drivers are available when the request is received by the system100 (e.g., no drivers are available that are within a particular or predetermined distance of the one or more users' pickup location). In other examples, a time of high utilization can correspond to a number of drivers in a given region as compared the number of users that have the service applications running on the respective devices in that region (even if no transport request has been made by those users) being less than a predetermined ratio.

Still further, in another example, a time of high utilization may also be a time when the number of drivers, in general, are significantly less than the number of users requesting transport at a given time (e.g., two times less). For example, drivers that are proximate to a user's pickup location or within a predefined geographic region of the user's pickup location may be unavailable because the drivers may be currently providing transport for other users or may be off duty. Based on current conditions (e.g., the number of available drivers in a given region and/or the number of users who have made transport requests), thedispatch110 can determine which geographic regions, if any, are operating in a time (or duration) of high utilization. In such times of high utilization, thedispatch110 can use user queues in order to arrange transport services.

According to some examples, thedispatch110 can include a queue manage114, a plurality of queue databases (or queues)115, a driver tracking112, adriver database113, and a client select118. When thedispatch110 determines that the high utilization condition is present in a given geographic region, the queue manage114 can receive information to operate thedispatch110 in a high utilization mode (as opposed to the normal transport arrangement mode during normal conditions). When aclient device170 makes and transmits atransport request171 to thesystem100, the request manage140 can provide the transport request171 (or relevant information from thetransport request171, such as thepickup location123 and the vehicle type125) to thedispatch110, such as to the queue manage114. In the high utilization mode, rather than transmitting an error message or a “no driver available message” to the requesting user because no drivers are available in the given region, the queue manage114 can place the user ID121 of the requesting user in a particular queue115 based on the information from thetransport request171.

For example, the queue manage114 can maintain a plurality of queues115 that each corresponds to a different geographic area or region. The geographic areas or regions can correspond to a metropolitan city and/or surrounding area, a city, a town, multiple towns, a portion or neighborhood of a city, a county, a state, a country, etc., and/or be designated by an administrator of thesystem100 using a plurality of location data points (e.g., five points of a perimeter identifying a region on a map). With reference to Northern California, for example, the plurality of queues115 can include a first queue for San Francisco, Calif., a second queue for the peninsula area of Northern California, a third queue for San Jose, Calif., a fourth queue for Marin County, Calif., a fifth queue for Oakland, Calif., a sixth queue for Fremont, Calif., etc. Based on thepickup location123 provided by the user, the queue manage114 can include the user ID121 to an appropriate queue115.

The plurality of queues115 can also be maintained based on both the geographic region as well as vehicle types. For example, when a user makes atransport request171, the user can select a type of vehicle for the transport service (e.g., a black car or sedan, an SUV, a limousine, a hybrid, a cab, any vehicle type, etc.). Information about the selected vehicle type125 can be provided as part of thetransport request171 and be provided to the queue manage114. The queue manage114 can place the user ID121 to an appropriate queue based on the vehicle types. In one example, each entry in a queue for a particular geographic region can include a user ID, a pickup location, a timestamp, and a vehicle type. As an addition or an alternative, there can be a plurality of queues corresponding to different vehicle types for a particular geographic region. For example, referring to the example of Northern California, the plurality of queues115 can include a first queue for black sedans in San Francisco, Calif., a second queue for SUVs in San Francisco, Calif., a third queue for any vehicle type in San Francisco, Calif., etc.

Referring back to the queue manage114, the queue manage114 can determine which geographic region the requesting user'spickup location123 is located in and/or the vehicle type125 requested by the user. Based on this information, the queue manage114 assigns or places the user ID121 of the requesting user in a particular queue115. In addition, the queue manage114 can track the time in which thetransport request171 was made by the user. As a result, during times of high utilization, for a particular geographic region, a plurality of user IDs can be added to a corresponding queue, with each user ID being ordered as compared to other user IDs by its respective timestamp.

Thedispatch110 can include the driver tracking112 and thedriver database113. Information about drivers can be stored in thedriver database113. In one example, the driver tracking112 can receive driver status information131 from the plurality ofdriver devices180 via thedriver device interface130. For example, the driver status information131 can specify the status of a particular driver, such as whether the driver is active and available, non-active or off-duty, in-use, having vehicle problems, etc. Such status information131 can be provided by the driver by providing input on a user interface of a service application running on the driver'srespective device180. Thedriver devices180 can also provide location information about the driver along with the driver's identifier (ID)133, such as thecurrent location135 of the driver (which can be determined by a GPS component of the driver's device180) or the destination location of the driver. The driver tracking112 can update thedriver database113 with the driver information in real-time for each respective driver (using the driver IDs133). In this manner, thedispatch110 can continually (and/or periodically) monitor the current position and status of drivers that are registered, for example, with thesystem100 and have been authorized to provide transport services.

When a driver becomes available, the driver can update his or her status information131 via his or herdriver device180 indicating that he or she can provide transport to users (e.g., provide input when the driver is on-duty or when the previous transport service that the driver was providing has been completed). The driver tracking112 can update thedriver database113 for the driver with the driver's status131 and the driver'scurrent location135. According to one example, the driver tracking112 can indicate to the client select118 that a driver is available and provide thedriver ID133 and/or the driver'scurrent location135 to the client select118 (e.g., before or after, or concurrently with updating the driver database113). As an addition or an alternative, the driver tracking112 can indicate to the client select118 that a driver is available and provide thedriver ID133, so that the client select118 can retrieve the driver'scurrent location135 and other information for the driver (e.g., vehicle type, ratings information, historical transport service information) from thedriver database113. In another example, the client select118 can continually or periodically monitor thedriver database113 to detect a change in a status of a driver (from being unavailable or off-duty to being available). By receiving information that a driver is available or detecting that a driver is available, the client select118 can be triggered, for example, to select a user from the one or more queues115 based on (i) the driver's vehicle type, (ii) the driver'scurrent location135, (iii) the selected vehicle types125 of respective users' IDs in the queue(s)115, and/or (iv) thepickup locations123 of respective users' IDs in the queue(s)115.

According to some examples, the client select118 can use the driver'scurrent location135 and the driver's vehicle type to first determine which queue(s) to select a user from. As discussed, the queue manage114 can manage a plurality of different queues specified by geographic region and/or vehicle type. For example, the driver that indicated that she is available can be located in downtown San Francisco and can be driving an SUV. The client select118 can determine which geographic region thecurrent location135 of that driver is located in and can access the appropriate queue of users that have requested transport service at a pickup location within that geographic region, e.g., access a San Francisco queue. In one example, the client select118 can also access the appropriate queue corresponding to an SUV or “any vehicle” type (which can include SUVs and other vehicles) or identify users from the accessed San Francisco queue of users that requested an SUV or “any vehicle” type. The client select118 can choose a user from the appropriately identified queue and assign that user to the driver so that the driver is instructed/invited to perform the transport service for that user.

The client select118 can select a user based on the user information of those users in the identified queue and/or the information about the driver that indicated that he or she is available. In one example, the client select118 can simply select the user having the oldest timestamp, e.g., the user who made the request before all the other users in that queue. For example, referring back to the previous example, the client select118 can select from the San Francisco, SUV queue, a user having the oldest timestamp and assign that user to the driver. In other examples, the client select118 can select a user by performing calculations to determine metrics relating to the user'stransport request171 based on the user'spickup location123 and information about the drivers retrieved or received from the driver tracking112 and/or thedriver database113.

For example, the client select118 can calculate or determine, for each user ID in the identified queue, (i) the distance between the user'spickup location123 and thecurrent location135 of the driver (e.g., thecurrent location135 of the driver device180), and/or (ii) an estimated travel time for the driver from thecurrent location135 to thepickup location123. The client select118 can select a user based on the distance and/or estimated travel time. Depending on implementation, the distance can correspond to (i) a difference between the two location points (e.g., Cartesian distance difference in a straight line) without taking into consideration an expected or predicted driving route the driver would take to get to thepickup location123 of a respective user from thecurrent location135, or (ii) a total distance the driver would take to get to thepickup location123 of a respective user from thecurrent location135 based on an expected or predicted route. For example, the client select118 can (i) determine the distance between thepickup location123 and thecurrent location135 of the driver, and select the user having the shortest distance, or (ii) determine the estimated travel time from thecurrent location135 of the driver location to thepickup location123, and select the user having the shortest estimated travel time.

The predicted route for determining distance and/or the estimated travel time can be determined by the client select118 using a variety of information, such as information from other sources (e.g., from other external/remote databases or sources, such as a mapping database, or from other databases of thesystem100, not shown inFIG. 1) and information from thedriver database113 about the driver's previously driven routes and/or driving habits (e.g., the driver likes to take a particular street or likes to take freeways instead of local streets when possible). For example, the predicted route and/or the estimated travel time can be determined based on a number of different factors, such as, (i) historical information of the driver with respect to previously routes driven (which can be stored in adriver database113 and/or a historical database), (ii) current traffic conditions, (iii) the date and/or time of day (e.g., morning, afternoon, late night, rush hour time, etc.), (iv) current weather conditions, (v) mapping information from a map database (e.g., what type of roadways are nearby, tunnels, bridges, one way streets, etc.), and (vi) other information (e.g., street speed limits, train schedules, city event calendars, construction zones, etc.). Such information can be received or retrieved from other sources by the client select118.

In another example, the client select118 can determine, for each user in a first set of users in the identified queue, (i) the distance between thepickup location123 of that user and thecurrent location135 of the driver, and/or (ii) an estimated travel time for the driver from thecurrent location135 to thepickup location123 of that user. The first set of users can correspond to a predefined number of users that have the oldest timestamps as compared to the other users that are not in the first set of users in the identified queue. If there are eight users, for example, in the queue, the first set of users can correspond to the first four users that requested transport—and consequently, have the four oldest timestamps. The client select118 can select the user from the first set having the shortest distance or estimated travel time for the driver. In this manner, the client select118 can provide fairness to requesting users by prioritizing the selection of users over other users based on who has been waiting the longest.

Depending on implementation, the client select118 can perform the selection of a user based on one ormore rules167 from therules database165. An administrator of thesystem100 can access theadministrator interface160 to provideinput161 corresponding tooperational parameters163. Theseparameters163 can be stored in therules database165 asrules167 that the client select118 can use to select a user from a queue for a driver that has become available. Therules database165 can store information for the selection process for the client select118.

For example, one ormore rules167 can direct the client select118 to prioritize or rank the users (or set of users) based on distance and/or estimated travel time (and/or other factors, discussed below). In one example, a rule can specify that the client select118 select the user having the shortest distance between thecurrent location135 of the driver location to the pickup location123 (regardless of timestamp), whereas another rule can instruct the client select118 to select the user having the shortest distance from a first set of users having the oldest timestamp. In other examples, a rule can specify that the client select118 select the user having the shortest estimated travel time between thecurrent location135 of the driver location to the pickup location123 (regardless of timestamp), whereas another rule can instruct the client select118 to select the user having the shortest estimated travel time from a first set of users having the oldest timestamp. In addition, one ormore rules167 can specify how the users in a particular queue can get grouped together in sets based on the respective timestamps. For example, an administrator can specify that the user selection be made from a first set of users having the oldest timestamps as compared to other users (e.g., five users in a set or seven users in a set). The first set can have the five oldest timestamps, the second set can have the next five oldest timestamps, and so forth.

According to some examples, one ormore rules167 can specify time constraints or limitations for thedispatch110. For example, if a user has been waiting in the queue for a certain amount of time that exceeds a threshold time, application of the one ormore rules167 can cause the client select118 to assign that user to the next available driver. In another example, if a user has been waiting in the queue for a certain amount of time that exceeds a threshold time, thedispatch110 can provide a message to be transmitted to the user'sclient device170 that no vehicles or drivers have been found for that user (e.g., the request manage140 can provide an error message to the user).

In addition, therules167 can also specify prioritizing or ranking the users in a queue (or a set of users in a queue) based on one or more of (i) feedback information of a driver (e.g., drivers' ratings), (ii) feedback information of the users, (iii) whether any of the capable drivers have previously provided transport service for the requesting users (e.g., select or prioritize a requesting user that gave that previously used driver good feedback for the driver), (iv) driver preferences, (v) user preferences, (vi) personal information about the driver (e.g., gender, age, etc.), (vii) personal information about the user (e.g., from the client database150), and/or other factors. Any combination of the discussed factors can be used by the client select118 to prioritize the users in a queue (or a set of users in a queue) for purposes of selecting a user for an available driver. In one example, therules167 can enable different weights to be applied different factors for purposes of prioritizing the capable drivers.

One ormore rules167 can also specify how the queue manage114 can maintain the queues115. In one example, a requesting user can be notified (e.g., via the request manage140) when making a transport request that a wait time is expected due to the high utilization condition. In such case, the user can specify (as part of the transport request171) a maximum wait time (e.g., inputted by the user) that the user is willing to wait so that after the maximum wait time is exceeded, the user'stransport request171 can be canceled without penalty. In such examples, therules167 can cause the queue manage114 to include a maximum wait time as an entry with the user's ID121 in a respective queue115 and cause the queue manage114 to remove the entry for that user when the maximum wait time is exceeded.

When the client select118 selects a user from an identified queue for the driver, thedispatch110 can transmit aninvitation message183 to thedriver device180 of the driver (e.g., using the driver ID133) via thedriver device interface130. Theinvitation message183 can be viewed as part of an interface of a service application running on thedriver device180. Theinvitation message183 can include information about the requesting user, the pickup location of the user, and provide selectable features to enable the driver to accept the transport service or reject/decline the transport service. If the driver declines the transport service, thedispatch110 receives the rejection (via the driver device interface130) and the client select118 is notified that the driver has rejected the transport service. The client select118 can then select another user from the queue115 for the driver. In such case, the user ID of the user that has not been accepted by the driver can remain in the queue until a next driver becomes available. The driver select118 can continue to select a user each time a rejection is received until there are no more users available in the queue.

If the driver accepts the transport service, thedispatch110 receives the acceptance and provides information about the driver to the request manage140 (or the driver'sID133 so that the request manage140 can retrieve necessary driver information from the driver database116). The request manage140 can notify the selected user by transmitting astatus message127 via theclient device interface120 to the user'sclient device170 that a driver will provide the transport service for the user. Thestatus message127 can include information, such as information about the driver (e.g., an image and name of the driver, vehicle license plate number) and information about the transport service (e.g., estimated time of arrival). The request manage140 can provide the information about the arranged transport service to the requesting user'sclient device170.

In addition, when the driver accepts the transport service, thedispatch110 also notifies the client select118 and/or the queue manage114 that the driver has accepted the transport service for the selected user. The queue manage114 can update the queue(s)115 to remove the selected user's ID121 from the respective queue115. The queue manage114 can dynamically update the queues115 in real-time based on changes in the status of the transport requests. For example, the queue manage114 can also remove an entry of a user in a queue115 when the user cancels the transport request, or when a maximum wait time has exceeded (e.g., designated by the user or designated as a default wait time for all users set by an administrator, such as fifteen minutes). As an addition or an alternative, the client select118 can inform the queue manage114 when a user is selected and/or when the driver accepts the invitation to provide the transport service for that user in order to notify the queue manage114 to update the queues115. Once the driver accepts the transport service, the driver can travel to thepickup location123 of the user and provide transport service for that user to the user's destination location (e.g., the destination location127).

Thedispatch110 can determine when the transport service has been completed based on information received from the driver device and/or the client device170 (e.g., via the driver tracking112), and provide information about the completed transport service to the request manage140 and to thepayment processing145. Thepayment processing145 can use the information about the completed transport service and arrange for payment to be made from a financial account associated with the user via an accounting message147 (e.g., to an external financial system). The request manage140 can provide thestatus message127 to indicate to the user that the transport service has been completed and to enable the user to view information about the completed transport service update the client information for the user in the client database150 (e.g., log the trip, generate a receipt).

According to some examples, thesystem100 can also determine a price for the fare of the transport service arranged for the user. When a user first makes the transport request121, the request manage140 can notify the user that a wait time is expected due to the high utilization condition and that the price for the fare is higher than normal (such as 1.5 times or 2 times the normal rate for when there is no high utilization condition). Because prices can vary depending on whether the current service conditions are normal, high utilization, or extremely high utilization (e.g., based on the number of requesting users as compared to the number of drivers on duty in a given geographic region), for example, it is beneficial to provide a set price for a requesting user. A requesting user can have the price for the fare be set or “locked” at the price when the user made the request, so that if prices go up as a result of the current conditions changing from high utilization to extremely high utilization, that user can still have the lower price despite receiving transport service fifteen minutes later. In another example, the price the user receives can be dynamic so that the user gets the price at the time the user is selected from the queue for a driver. In such case, if the price has gone up from the time the user first made thetransport requests171 to the time the user is selected from the queue, the request manage140 can send the user amessage127 that tells the user that a driver has been assigned but that the price has gone up, and can request confirmation from the user that the user still wants the transport. After receiving confirmation, thedispatch110 can transmit theinvitation message183 to the driver. If the user does not confirm the price increase, the queue manage114 can remove that user from the respective queue115 and the client select118 can select another user from the queue115 based on the vehicle type, the pickup locations of the users in the queue115 and the current location of the driver.

In this manner, thedispatch110 can optimize the method in which a transport service can be arranged between a user and a driver, and in particular, can optimize the transport service to be arranged during times of high utilization of drivers. In addition, thedispatch110 can select a user based on timestamps to maintain overall fairness while also reducing the amount of travel time or down time for an available driver.

While some examples described herein illustrate thesystem100 selecting one user ID for arranging a transport service when one driver becomes available during a time of high utilization, in other examples, multiple user IDs can be selected for arranging multiple transport services when multiple drivers become available around the same time (e.g., within 30 seconds of each other). For example, during a time of high utilization in a given geographic region, thedispatch110 can add requesting users' IDs in a given queue115 for the geographic region even with one or more drivers being available at the time atransport request171 is received. Thedispatch110 can arrange multiple transport services for multiple users that are waiting (e.g., whose IDs are in the queue115) when multiple drivers become available at around the same time in order to optimize the arrangement of the transport services.

An example is described with respect toFIG. 1 for purpose of illustrating intelligent queueing to optimize the arrangement of transport services for multiple users. For example, four users (U1, U2, U3, U4) may have requested transport services in a given geographic region at around the same time (e.g., five seconds apart from each other) during a period of high utilization. U1 may have requested first, then U2, and so on. Thesystem100 can determine that a time of high utilization exists in a given region from current conditions associated with the geographic region. At the time the four users requested transport services, one driver, D1, may have been available in the given region. The queue manage114 can add the four user IDs corresponding to the four user in a queue corresponding to the given region. For example, rather than processing the transport request for U1 and arranging the transport service for U1 with the available driver, D1, thedispatch110 can wait a predetermined amount of time to determine if other users would also make a request and/or if other drivers would become available in the given region. In this example, the three additional users have made transport requests after U1.

Shortly after the fourth user, U4, made the transport request, another driver, D2, may become available in the given region. In this example, thedispatch110 can determine (e.g., based on one or more rules) that a predetermined number of drivers are available (e.g., two, in this particular example) to perform the multiple transport service arrangement process for the users in the queue115. Thedispatch110 can also determine thecurrent locations135 of the two drivers in the given region. The client select118 then perform calculations to determine metrics relating to each of the four users with respect to each of the two available drivers. The metrics can by a value corresponding to distance or a value corresponding to time. For example, the client select118 can determine, for each user, (i) the distance from the current location of D1 to that user's pickup location, and/or (ii) the estimated travel time of D1 from the current location of D1 to that user's pickup location. Similarly, the client select118 can determine, for each user, (i) the distance from the current location of D2 to that user's pickup location, and/or (ii) the estimated travel time of D2 from the current location of D2 to that user's pickup location.

However, by arranging multiple transport services for multiple users at around the same time, thedispatch110 can optimize the arrangement of the transport services. Instead of assigning D1 to U2, the client select118 can perform an additional computation to determine the lowest average estimated travel time for the two drivers when paired with two of the users. In this case, the client select118 can determine that assigning U2 to D2 (3 minutes of estimated travel time) and assigning U4 to D1 (5 minutes of estimated travel time) results in the lowest travel times for the two drivers (e.g., an average of 4 minutes of estimated travel time). In this manner, by using a queue, thedispatch110 can arrange multiple transport services around the same time in order to optimize the overall performance of the system100 (and reduce collective waste, in terms of time, for drivers).

Methodology

FIG. 2A illustrates an example method for arranging an on-demand service for a user using one or more queues. A method such as described by an example ofFIG. 2A can be implemented using, for example, components described with examples ofFIG. 1. Accordingly, references made to elements ofFIG. 1 are for purposes of illustrating a suitable element or component for performing a step or sub-step being described.

Referring toFIG. 2A, thesystem100 can maintain one or more queues that includes a plurality of user IDs (210). During times of high utilization in which the number of drivers in a geographic region is significantly less than the number of users that are requesting transport service (and/or when no drivers are available in the geographic region at a time a request for transport is made by a user), thesystem100 can place a user ID of a corresponding user that made atransport request171 in a particular queue115. According to an example, atransport request171 can include a user ID121, apickup location123, and a vehicle type125. Based on thepickup location123 and the vehicle type125, thesystem100 can place an entry of the user (using the user ID121) in a respective queue115 that corresponds to a particular geographic region in which thepickup location123 is located in and/or a vehicle type requested by the user.

In some examples, the queue115 can be maintained using the timestamps of the transport requests for the users (212). When atransport request171 is made by the user or received by thesystem100, a timestamp can be associated with the request for that user. The queue manage114 of thesystem100 can, for example, manage an order or ranking of the entries in the queue115 based on the timestamps corresponding to the entries. In addition, in one example, the queue manage114 can also group the entries or user IDs121 of the plurality of users in the queue115 using the timestamps (214). For example, the grouping can enable the client select118 to select a user from a particular group of users (as opposed to all users in the queue115) so that the group of users having the oldest timestamps can have priority to be assigned a driver than another set or group of users having newer timestamps. Thesystem100 can continue to receive transport requests and assign the user IDs and its corresponding transport request information in an appropriate queue(s)115 (e.g., update the one or more queues115).

When a driver in a given geographic region becomes available (e.g., the driver goes on-duty after being off-duty or has finished providing transport for another user), the driver can operate the driver'scomputing device180 to update her status131. Thesystem100 can receive the driver'sID133 and information about the driver's availability, e.g., indicating that the driver is available to provide transport to users in the given geographic region, from the driver device180 (220). Thesystem100 can also receive (e.g., as part of the status information or separately) thecurrent location135 of the driver.

Thesystem100 can use thecurrent location135 of the driver to determine which queue or which set of users that driver can provide transport for (e.g., the driver may be positioned in the given region). For example, thecurrent location135 of the driver can be within a predefined geographic region (e.g., a region that is selected or configured by an administrator of the system100) so that the driver can provide transport service for those users who have pickup locations within that predefined geographic region. In another example, the driver can be determined to be able to provide transport for users in multiple queues that correspond to multiple geographic regions if those users have pickup locations within a particular distance or estimated travel time from thecurrent location135 of the driver. In response to receiving the information indicating that the driver is available to provide transport, thesystem100 can identify one or more corresponding queues115 and select a user from the one or more queues115 based on (i) the vehicle type specified by the users in the one or more queues115, (ii) the vehicle type of the driver, (iii) the pickup locations of the users in the one or more queues115, and/or (iv) thecurrent location135 of the driver (230).

According to examples, the client select118 can select, from a queue (or from a predefined set/group of users in a queue having the oldest timestamps), a user ID to assign to the driver based on the estimated travel time of that driver to the pickup locations of the users in the queue (or the predefined group of users in the queue) (232). For example, for each user in the queue (or for each user in the predefined group of users), the client select118 can determine the estimated travel time from thecurrent location135 of the driver to the respective pickup location of that user. The estimated travel time can be determined based on an expected or predicted route of travel, current weather conditions, traffic conditions, day and time of day, etc. The client select118 can then select the user having the shortest estimated travel time.

As an addition or an alternative, the client select118 can also select a user ID based on distance (234). For example, the client select118 can determine, for each user in the queue (or for each user in the predefined group of users), the distance (either straight line distance from point to point or total distance that a driver would travel along an expected or predicted route) from thecurrent location135 of the driver to the respective pickup location of that user. The route can be an expected or predicted route of travel that a driver would take based on current weather conditions, traffic conditions, historical information of the driver, day and time of day, etc. The client select118 can then select the user having the shortest distance time. In some examples, the client select118 can also select a user based on a combination of estimated travel time, distance, and other factors (such as whether the driver has previously driven any of the users in the queue and/or has received a positive feedback as opposed to a negative feedback, user and/or driver preferences, etc.) (236).

Thesystem100 can then transmit respective messages to the devices of the selected user and the driver (240). According to an example, thedispatch110 can first send an invitation message to that driver'scomputing device180 with information about the selected user. The information can include the user ID of the selected user, the pickup location, ratings/feedback information of the selected user, an image of the selected user, and other user information, and enable the driver to either reject or accept the invitation. If the driver accepts the invitation, thesystem100 can (e.g., via thedispatch110 and/or the request manage140) communicate a status message to the selected user notifying that user that a driver has been selected/assigned to the user. The status message can indicate the driver's estimated time of arrival to the user's pickup location as well as a visual graphic showing the driver's location and movement on a map. Thesystem100 can also update the respective queue to remove the selected user ID from the queue.

If the driver does not accept the invitation, thedispatch110 receives the rejection and the client select118 selects another user from the queue or from the set/group of users in the queue. In one example, the previously selected user ID can remain in the queue. After selecting the next user ID, thedispatch110 can transmit another invitation message to thedriver device180 with information about the next user. The process can continue until (i) the driver is timed out, e.g., designated as not being available for a predetermined duration of time because the driver rejected a predetermined number of invitations, (ii) the driver accepts the invitation, and/or (iii) no more entries for users are left in the queue.

FIG. 2B illustrates another example method for arranging an on-demand services using one or more queues. A method such as described by an example ofFIG. 2B can be implemented using, for example, components described with examples ofFIG. 1. Accordingly, references made to elements ofFIG. 1 are for purposes of illustrating a suitable element or component for performing a step or sub-step being described. In addition, in one example, the processes described inFIG. 2B may also be performed by the service arrangement system in conjunction with the processes described inFIG. 2A.

Referring toFIG. 2B, thedispatch110 can maintain a queue that includes a plurality of user IDs (250). For purpose of simplicity, in the example ofFIG. 2B, the queue can correspond to a particular geographic region in which a high utilization condition is present. Each of the plurality of user IDs in the queue can correspond to a user that has made a transport request having a specified pickup location within the geographic region. Thedispatch110 can manage the queue by adding user IDs to the queue when additional transports requests are made in association with the given region or by deleting user IDs from the queue when the previously made transport requests are canceled by the respective users.

Thesystem100 can determine when a predetermined number of drivers are available to provide transport services in the given region (260). Depending on implementation, the predetermined number of drivers can correspond to a specific number, a ratio of a number of available drivers as compared to a number of users in the queue, or a ratio of a number of available drivers as compared to a number of users that have the service application running on the respective client devices in the given region. When thedispatch110 determines that the predetermined number of drivers are available, thedispatch110 can perform computations using location data in order to arrange multiple transport services for multiple users in the queue to be provided by multiple available drivers.

Thedispatch110 can select multiple user identifiers from the queue to assign corresponding users to the multiple drivers (270). Thedispatch110 can make the selection by calculating metrics for individual users in the queue. According to an example, thedispatch110 can calculate, for each user ID, metrics that are based on the pickup location of the corresponding user and the current locations of individual available drivers in the given region (275). For purpose of simplicity, assuming there are N users in the queue and there are M available drivers (e.g., where N can be greater than M), thedispatch110 can determine for each of the N users, M number of values, where each of the M values is based on that user's pickup location and the current location of one of the M drivers. The value can correspond to (i) a straight line distance from the pickup location of the user to a current location of a driver, (ii) a total predicted distance that a driver would travel along an expected or predicted route from the current location of that driver to the pickup location of the user, or (iii) an estimated travel time a driver would travel from the current location of that driver to the pickup location of the user along an expected or predicted route. Thedispatch110 can then select a set of users in the queue to be provided transport by the M available drivers based on the computed metrics.

For example, if thedispatch110 is to select three users for three drivers based on straight line distances, thedispatch110 can select a first user for a first driver, a second user for a second driver, and a third user for a third driver so that these three users, taken together, have the lowest total distance (or lowest average distance) between the individual pickup locations of these users and the respective current location of the individual drivers, as compared to another combination of three users in the queue. Similarly, if thedispatch110 is to select four users for four drivers based on estimated travel times, thedispatch110 can select and match each of the four users to an available driver so that these four users, taken together, have the lowest total travel time (or lowest average travel time) between the individual pickup locations of these users and the respective current location of the individual drivers, as compared to another combination of four users in the queue. Thedispatch110 can make the computations based on the most recent current location data point received from each of the available drivers' devices.

Thedispatch110 can transmit, to the selected users' devices and to the respective drivers' devices, notifications about the respective arranged transport services (280). According to an example, such notifications can be provided as an in-application message or interactive user interface (e.g., in the client service application) or as a notification message separate from the client service application. Referring back to the example, if M users are selected (from N total users in the queue) to be transported by M drivers, thedispatch110 can transmit to each of the M drivers' devices, an invitation notification to enable that driver to accept the invitation and provide the transport service for a respective user. The invitation notification can provide information about the respective user (e.g., a name and/or photo of the user) and that user's pickup location (e.g., shown with a graphic feature on a map and/or with textual information showing the address, landmark, or street intersection, etc.). In some examples, thedispatch110 can transmit, to each of the selected users' devices, notifications about the arranged transport service for that user when the respective driver accepts the invitation.

FIG. 3 illustrates an example of a queue as described herein. References made to elements ofFIG. 1 for purposes of illustration. According to an example, aqueue300 can be a database or table that is stored in a memory resource of thesystem100 ofFIG. 1. Thequeue300 can include a plurality ofentries310, where eachentry310 corresponds to a particular user that has made a request for a transport service, such as during a time of high utilization. Eachentry310, for example, can include a user ID, a pickup location (e.g., represented as a location data point, such as a latitude and a longitude), and/or a timestamp corresponding to the user's transport request. Thequeue300 can also be specific to a particular geographic region and/or a particular vehicle type. For example, theentries310 of the users in thequeue300 can correspond to users that have each made a transport request for the same particular vehicle type (e.g., black town car) and having a pickup location within the same geographic region (e.g., San Francisco, Calif.). Another queue can correspond to the San Francisco, Calif. geographic region for a different vehicle type (e.g., SUV), while another queue can correspond to the San Jose, Calif. geographic region for a black town car.

Thesystem100, for example, can also groupentries310 together based on timestamps. For example, timestamps T1-T5 can represent the oldest timestamps of transport requests as compared to the other timestamps. The queue manage114 can group thoseentries310 together as afirst group320. The queue manage114 can group the next set ofentries310 as a second group, and so forth. When a driver having a current location in San Francisco, Calif. and having the vehicle type, black town car, becomes available, the client select118 can access the corresponding queue300 (e.g., the queue that corresponds to black town car vehicle types and San Francisco, Calif.) and select a user from thefirst group320 based on the pickup locations of those users and the current location of the driver. Once a user is selected, such as the user with the user ID3, the queue manage114 can update thequeue300 by removing user ID3, and updating thegroup320 to include another user, ID6, for example.

Hardware Diagrams

FIG. 4 is a block diagram that illustrates a computer system upon which examples described herein may be implemented. For example, in the context ofFIG. 1, thesystem100 may be implemented using a computer system such as described byFIG. 4. Thesystem100 may also be implemented using a combination of multiple computer systems as described inFIG. 4.

In one implementation, thecomputer system400 includes processingresources410, amain memory420, a read-only memory (ROM)430, astorage device440, and acommunication interface450. Thecomputer system400 includes at least oneprocessor410 for processing information. Themain memory420, such as a random access memory (RAM) or other dynamic storage device, can store information and instructions to be executed by theprocessor410. Themain memory420 also may be used for storing temporary variables or other intermediate information during execution of instructions to be executed by theprocessor410. Thecomputer system400 may also include other static storage device for storing static information and instructions for theprocessor410. Thestorage device440, such as a magnetic disk or optical disk, is provided for storing information and instructions, such as instructions for implementing components described inFIG. 1, such as thedispatch110. For example, the instructions for thedispatch110 can be executed by theprocessing resources410 to perform the queueing and selection processes described inFIGS. 1 through 3.

Thecommunication interface450 can enable thecomputer system400 to communicate with one or more networks480 (e.g., cellular network) through use of the network link (wireless or using a wire). Using the network link, thecomputer system400 can communicate with one or more computing devices, such as client devices and driver devices, and one or more servers. In some variations, thecomputer system400 can receive atransport request452 from a client device of a user via the network link. Thetransport request452 can include the user's user identifier, a pickup location, a destination location, and/or a vehicle type selection. During times of high utilization, thetransport request452 can be processed by theprocessor410 and theprocessor410 can update a respective queue with the user's identifier, the pickup location, and/or a time stamp. When thecomputer system400 receives information from a driver that he or she is available for providing transport, theprocessor410 can select a user from the queue based on the location information of the users in the queue and the current location of the driver. Theprocessor410 can transmit, over thenetwork480, an invitation message to the driver to provide transport for the selected user, and when the driver accepts the invitation, theprocessor410 can transmit, over thenetwork480, astatus message454 to the client device (e.g., that made the transport request) notifying the user that a driver has been assigned to the user.

Thecomputer system400 can also include adisplay device460, such as a cathode ray tube (CRT), an LCD monitor, or a television set, for example, for displaying graphics and information to a user. Aninput mechanism470, such as a keyboard that includes alphanumeric keys and other keys, can be coupled tocomputer system400 for communicating information and command selections toprocessor410. Other non-limiting, illustrative examples ofinput mechanisms470 include a mouse, a trackball, touch-sensitive screen, or cursor direction keys for communicating direction information and command selections to theprocessor410 and for controlling cursor movement on thedisplay460.

Examples described herein are related to the use ofcomputer system400 for implementing the techniques described herein. According to one example, those techniques are performed by thecomputer system400 in response to theprocessor410 executing one or more sequences of one or more instructions contained in themain memory420. Such instructions may be read into themain memory420 from another machine-readable medium, such as thestorage device440. Execution of the sequences of instructions contained in themain memory420 causes theprocessor410 to perform the process steps described herein. In alternative implementations, hard-wired circuitry may be used in place of or in combination with software instructions to implement examples described herein. Thus, the examples described are not limited to any specific combination of hardware circuitry and software.

FIG. 5 is a block diagram that illustrates a mobile computing device upon which examples described herein may be implemented. In one example, acomputing device500 may correspond to a mobile computing device, such as a cellular device that is capable of telephony, messaging, and data services. Thecomputing device500 can correspond to a client device or a driver device. Examples of such devices include smartphones, handsets or tablet devices for cellular carriers. Thecomputing device500 includes aprocessor510,memory resources520, a display device530 (e.g., such as a touch-sensitive display device), one or more communication sub-systems540 (including wireless communication sub-systems), input mechanisms550 (e.g., an input mechanism can include or be part of the touch-sensitive display device), and one or more location detection mechanisms (e.g., a GPS component)570. In one example, at least one of thecommunication sub-systems540 sends and receives cellular data over data channels and voice channels.

Theprocessor510 is configured with software and/or other logic to perform one or more processes, steps and other functions described with implementations, such as described byFIGS. 1 through 3, and elsewhere in the application. Theprocessor510 is configured, with instructions and data stored in thememory resources520, to operate a service application as described inFIGS. 1 through 3. For example, instructions for operating the service application in order to display user interfaces can be stored in thememory resources520 of thecomputing device500.

A user can operate a client device (such as a computing device500) to operate a client service application in order to make a request for a transport service. Alocation data point565, such as a location data point corresponding to the current location of thecomputing device500, can be determined from the GPS component570. Thelocation data point565 can be wirelessly transmitted to the system via thecommunication sub-systems540 as part of the request for the transport service. In another example, the user can specify a different location data point than the current location of the computing device as the pickup location (e.g., by inputting an address or making a selection on a map via the input mechanisms550) to be transmitted as part of the request for transport. The intelligent dispatch system can receive the request from thecomputing device500 and arrange a transport service for the user, such as described inFIGS. 1 through 3. The system can transmit a notification or status message(s)545 regarding the arranged transport service to thecomputing device500 via the communication sub-systems540 (e.g., that a driver is being selected, that a driver has accepted). Thestatus messages545 can be processed by theprocessor510 to provide the status information to the user as part of auser interface515 on thedisplay530.

Theprocessor510 can provide a variety of content to thedisplay530 by executing instructions and/or applications that are stored in thememory resources520. One ormore user interfaces515 can be provided by theprocessor510, such as a user interface for the client service application or a user interface for the driver service application, which can include the information corresponding to thestatus messages545. WhileFIG. 5 is illustrated for a mobile computing device, one or more examples may be implemented on other types of devices, including full-functional computers, such as laptops and desktops (e.g., PC).

It is contemplated for examples described herein to extend to individual elements and concepts described herein, independently of other concepts, ideas or system, as well as for examples to include combinations of elements recited anywhere in this application. Although examples are described in detail herein with reference to the accompanying drawings, it is to be understood that the concepts are not limited to those precise examples. Accordingly, it is intended that the scope of the concepts be defined by the following claims and their equivalents. Furthermore, it is contemplated that a particular feature described either individually or as part of an example can be combined with other individually described features, or parts of other examples, even if the other features and examples make no mentioned of the particular feature. Thus, the absence of describing combinations should not preclude having rights to such combinations.

Claims

What is being claimed is:

1. A method for arranging a transport service through use of computing devices, the method being performed by one or more processors of a computing device and comprising:

for a given geographic region, receiving a plurality of transport requests from a plurality of client devices, each transport request including a pickup location that is within the given geographic region and that is specified by a user that operates the respective client device;

storing, in a queue corresponding to the given geographic region, a plurality of user identifiers corresponding to the plurality of users that made the plurality of transport requests, the queue being stored in a memory resource that is accessible by the computing device;

receiving, from a driver device of a driver, (i) information indicating that the driver is available to provide a transport service for a user, and (ii) information about a current location of the driver device, the current location being within the given geographic region; and

in response to receiving the information indicating that the driver is available, selecting a user identifier from the queue based, at least in part, on (i) the pickup locations specified by the plurality of users and (ii) the current location of the driver device, wherein the user identifier is selected to assign a corresponding user to the driver.

2. The method ofclaim 1, wherein storing the plurality of user identifiers includes storing the plurality of user identifiers in an order based on a timestamp associated with each of the plurality of user identifiers, the timestamp for each user identifier corresponding to a time the computing device received the transport request from a client device associated with the corresponding user.

3. The method ofclaim 2, wherein selecting the user identifier from the queue includes selecting the user identifier from a first set of user identifiers in the queue, the first set of user identifiers corresponding to a predetermined number of user identifiers having the oldest timestamps.

4. The method ofclaim 3, wherein selecting the user identifier from the first set of user identifiers in the queue includes determining, for each of the first set of user identifiers, an estimated travel time from the current location of the driver device to the pickup location corresponding to that user identifier.

5. The method ofclaim 4, wherein selecting the user identifier from the first set of user identifiers in the queue includes selecting the user identifier having the shortest estimated travel time as compared to the estimated travel time of others of the first set of user identifiers.

6. The method ofclaim 1, wherein selecting the user identifier from the queue includes determining, for each of the plurality of user identifiers in the queue, an estimated travel time from the current location of the driver device to the pickup location corresponding to that user identifier.

7. The method ofclaim 6, wherein selecting the user identifier from the queue includes selecting the user identifier having the shortest estimated travel time as compared to the estimated travel time of others of the plurality of user identifiers.

8. The method ofclaim 1, wherein selecting the user identifier from the queue includes determining, for each of the plurality of user identifiers in the queue, a distance from the current location of the first driver to the pickup location corresponding to that user identifier.

9. The method ofclaim 8, wherein selecting the user identifier from the queue includes selecting the user identifier having the shortest distance as compared to the distance of others of the plurality of user identifiers.

10. The method ofclaim 1, further comprising:

in response to selecting the user identifier from the queue, transmitting, to the driver device, an invitation notification about the transport service for the corresponding user associated with the selected user identifier, the invitation notification enabling the driver to accept or reject providing transport for the corresponding user.

11. The method ofclaim 10, further comprising:

receiving, from the driver device, information corresponding to an acceptance of the invitation notification; and

in response to receiving the information corresponding to the acceptance, (i) transmitting a notification to the client device corresponding to the selected user identifier, the notification indicating that the driver has been assigned to provide transport for the corresponding user, and (ii) updating the queue by removing the selected user identifier from the queue.

12. The method ofclaim 1, wherein each transport request of the plurality of transport requests includes information about a specific vehicle type, and wherein the queue corresponds to the specific vehicle type.

13. A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing instructions that, when executed by one or more processors of a computing device, cause the computing device to:

for a given geographic region, receive a plurality of transport requests from a plurality of client devices, each transport request including a pickup location that is within the given geographic region and that is specified by a user that operates the respective client device;

store, in a queue corresponding to the given geographic region, a plurality of user identifiers corresponding to the plurality of users that made the plurality of transport requests, the queue being stored in a memory resource that is accessible by the computing device;

receive, from a driver device of a driver, (i) information indicating that the driver is available to provide a transport service for a user, and (ii) information about a current location of the driver device, the current location being within the given geographic region; and

in response to receiving the information indicating that the driver is available, select a user identifier from the queue based, at least in part, on (i) the pickup locations specified by the plurality of users and (ii) the current location of the driver device, wherein the user identifier is selected to assign a corresponding user to the driver.

14. The non-transitory computer-readable medium ofclaim 13, wherein the instructions cause the computing device to store the plurality of user identifiers by storing the plurality of user identifiers in an order based on a timestamp associated with each of the plurality of user identifiers, the timestamp for each user identifier corresponding to a time the computing device received the transport request from a client device associated with the corresponding user.

15. The non-transitory computer-readable medium ofclaim 14, wherein the instructions cause the computing device to select the user identifier from the queue by selecting the user identifier from a first set of user identifiers in the queue, the first set of user identifiers corresponding to a predetermined number of user identifiers having the oldest timestamps.

16. The non-transitory computer-readable medium ofclaim 15, wherein the instructions cause the computing device to select the user identifier from the first set of user identifiers in the queue by (i) determining, for each of the first set of user identifiers, an estimated travel time from the current location of the driver device to the pickup location corresponding to that user identifier, and (ii) selecting the user identifier having the shortest estimated travel time as compared to the estimated travel time of others of the first set of user identifiers.

17. The non-transitory computer-readable medium ofclaim 13, wherein the instructions cause the computing device to select the user identifier from the first set of user identifiers in the queue by (i) determining, for each of the first set of user identifiers, a distance from the current location of the driver device to the pickup location corresponding to that user identifier, and (ii) selecting the user identifier having the shortest distance as compared to the estimated travel time of others of the first set of user identifiers.

18. A method for arranging transport services through use of computing devices, the method being performed by one or more processors of a computing device and comprising:

determining, based on information received from a set of driver devices, that a predetermined number of drivers operating the set of driver devices are available in the given geographic region to provide transport services for users, the information including a current location of each driver device;

for each of the plurality of user identifiers, determining a set of metrics based on the pickup location associated with that user identifier and the current location of each driver device; and

arranging multiple transport services by selecting the predetermined number of user identifiers from the queue to be assigned to the predetermined number of drivers based on the set of metrics associated with each of the plurality of user identifiers.

19. The method ofclaim 18, wherein for each of the plurality of user identifiers, determining the set of metrics includes determining an estimated travel time from the current location of each driver device to the pickup location corresponding to that user identifier.

20. The method ofclaim 18, wherein for each of the plurality of user identifiers, determining the set of metrics includes determining a distance from the current location of each driver device to the pickup location corresponding to that user identifier.